Disclaimer: You already know that I don't own escaflowne

Disclaimer: You already know that I don't own escaflowne.

Notes: Next chapter up for everyone. I'm sad but this story will be ending soon. Three more chapters at the least probably though. Talk to you later. ~Firestone~

Where should I start? Maybe in a forest beside a waterfall…

The enemy was still pursuing them as Hitomi and Van (still carrying Allen) flew off towards the waterfall. The rushing waters chilled Hitomi to the bone, but she was following Van. For the minute they had lost soldiers among the large forest down below. For a moment she thought Van was crazy as he went straight into the waterfall at breakneck speed, but as she followed there was a cave on the other side.

Hitomi…

The two part-draconians landed upon the stone cold floor. Van set Allen against the wall as he retracted his wings. Hitomi retracted her own wings as she glanced around the misty cave. It was a medium sized cave with a misty atmosphere and damp floor. The ceiling was low, but not quite low enough so they had to duck. It was a cozy cave and a good choice for shelter. She wondered how he knew of it in the first place. It was very well hidden.

Van…

'This will a good place to rest and spend the night without worrying about being under attack; not that we wouldn't know of a attack thanks to Hitomi.' Thought Van. He looked over just to see what his love was doing at the moment. She was glancing around the cave with approval. He knew of this cave because it was where his mother taught him how to fly…

~~Flashback~~

"Now Van concentrate on pure air. Think of flying through the air like a bird and gliding above the water below," said Varie with patience. It was the first day of the third moon and Varie was teaching her youngest son how to fly. He concentrated his hardest on the air around him. It was like magic as two of the purest wings burst from his back. They didn't actually get to try flying that day because Varie was called on important matters, but Van never forgot where this place was. This was also the place where his long lost love had sprouted wings for the first time.

~End of Flashback~

'Wait. Since when did Hitomi have wings,' he thought to himself.

"Hitomi since when were you draconian," he asked aloud.

"Since your mother and my grandmother told me so yesterday," she replied.

Now it was her turn to ask a question, "Since when did you know about this cave?"

"This is where my mother gave me my first flying lesson," he said.

"What are we going to do with Allen," she asked, "we can't just leave him here and it would be suicide to bring him with us."

"We're going to leave him here. It's not like anyone knows where this is besides us," he said confidently. He kissed he softly just to prove it.

"Oh, all right, but if he's not here when we come back for him I'm just saying 'I told you so,'" she said.

That night she slept peacefully in her love's arms with only dreams of them together. No nightmares, no visions, she was in heaven. This probably wouldn't last as much as she wished it did. The only bad thing was that she had no idea as to how Merle and Jake were doing. She hoped they were ok while beside Van was thinking similar thoughts. Allen stirred, but didn't awake as dawn approached.

The soldiers in the forest…

Falon was watching the group like a hawk now that five of his best soldiers were dead. Two more were injured and one in critical condition. Only about seven were in the shape for an attack and he couldn't screw this up. One screw up and he was dead meat.

The only problem was that he had no clue as to where the two draconians and their pal were. They had lost them over an hour ago and that was not good. He was so livid with rage that he was lashing out at his soldiers. Something he never does. We he found them they were dead by his hands.

One soldier dared to face captain in the state he was in.

"Sir, what do want us to do," he shakily asked.

"Set up camp now," the general hissed at him.

"Right away sir," said the soldier going off to do just that.

'We will wait until an hour before dawn to search for them,' he thought, 'it would be pointless to look for them now.' A plan was forming in his head.

Over to Merle and Jake…

They knew they were going to face the leader a couple of minutes before they saw him. Merle knew what was going to happen to them and was not going to be pretty. Far from it actually. Jake also knew it. It was in the air; you could tell from how the soldiers that were taking them were getting really excited.

'This is going to be a long night,' they both thought in unison. Under the watchful eyes of the general they were tortured beyond they're wildest nightmares. Whips were the first and then use your imagination for what was next. It was the worst experience either one had ever been through. They were both strong through it, but they were breaking by the end. You could tell by the fear in their eyes.

Zaibach was bad enough with them trying to change fate, but this wasn't even right for an enemy to do. Plunging the world into darkness and destruction was horrible. The world was going back to what it was a thousand years ago. Now only the key could stop this mess. Only one person knew what the key was and she isn't there at the moment. It was the one true balance Gaea had at the time, but it will rise again to send this source of to the cold depths.

Alright everyone that's it for now. If you want more I want reviews. A trade for a trade. Hopefully I won't have too much homework this week and I'll be able to do it easily. Catch ya guys later. Ja ne. ~Firestone~